Beneath the Blue
by AlphaShae
Summary: When Zoro takes his step-brother, Tony, to the aquarium he runs into a flirty blonde diver. A fluffy Sanzo fic.
1. Chapter 1

Beneath the Blue

* * *

Zoro felt awed and startlingly small. The manta ray peacefully swimming by was easily twice his size, and it was a little difficult to wrap his brain around a fish that big that wasn't a damn whale. The ray looked like it was flying through the water as its fins flapped like wings and it banked into a turn. He only tore his eyes away from the impressive beast when an even bigger whale shark swam into view.

Beside him, his young foster-brother, Tony, was pressed up fully against the aquarium glass. The viewing window was absolutely massive. It looked at least two stories high, and was nearly as wide. The room behind them was large as well, and had a series of padded benches set up like an amphitheater. Zoro was aware of people gathering behind them, but with the window being so fucking huge, he doubted that the two of them and the other little kids standing up here would be a problem.

"Hey. I'll be over there down in front when you're ready. I think the show will be starting soon."

Turning, Zoro nodded at Ace, "Sure. Thanks for getting the seats."

"No problem! Luffy has been begging for a snack again anyway. It's easier to feed him when he's sitting down. Little brat can't make as much of a mess."

Zoro chuckled, "I wouldn't say that. He usually finds a way!"

"Accccccce! I'm 'ungreee!" The small four-year-old whined and nearly yanked Ace's shorts down trying to climb his leg.

"Shit! Luffy…!" Grumbling, Ace dragged Luffy to their seats while clutching his pants with one hand and ignoring the disapproving eyes of the parents around them. Zoro openly laughed at his friend's distress, glad that Tony was relatively well-behaved.

Turning back to the tank, Zoro startled when he found himself face-to-face with a diver. He took a half-step back as his wide eyes took in the air hose and the neon yellow diving mask that obscured the diver's features. His reaction hadn't been lost on the man in the tank, and he briefly removed his mouthpiece, displaying his white teeth in a grin so Zoro would know that the sneaky bastard was laughing at him. After a moment of prolonged embarrassment for Zoro, the diver broke eye contact and fluttered his arms to sink lower in the tank until he could pat at the glass over where Tony had pressed his little hand. Tony giggled shyly as the man gave him a playful 'high-five' through the glass before swimming over to where the next child was jumping up and down and vying for attention.

"Come on Tony the show must be starting. Let's go sit down." At least only that shitty diver seemed to have noticed his overreaction earlier. His step-brother nodded and took Zoro's hand.

Not long after they squeezed in next to Ace and a crumb-coated Luffy, a female diver swam into view and waved at the growing crowd, "Hello everyone! Welcome to the Grand Ocean Aquarium! This is the four-thirty diving show!"

The male diver completed his high-fives and righted himself so he could point out the aquarium logo on his chest as his partner greeted the audience. She continued with her introductions, "My name is Camie. I am a student of marine biology at the Grand University nearby. My friend here is Sanji. He is studying aquaculture at the same school. We are both interns here at the aquarium."

When his name was announced, Sanji removed his mouthpiece to give everyone a cheeky grin as he waved. At Zoro's side, Tony enthusiastically waved back at his 'friend'. Zoro couldn't help but chuckle - the little guy's excitement was pretty cute. It almost seemed like Sanji had spotted them when the diver's smile grew bigger and he looked in their direction before giving a thumbs-up. Tony grabbed at Zoro's arm, smiling even as he shyly hid his face in Zoro's shirtsleeve.

Camie's voice was slightly hollow-sounding and distorted from where the microphone must have been placed in the equipment encompassing her face, but she was still easy to understand, "Now we can't hear you in this tank. I know it doesn't seem like it, but this acrylic window is two feet thick! Isn't that amazing? Also the window is held in place by the pressure of the water. That means there are no nails."

Zoro was impressed as he looked at the huge pane of acrylic. He couldn't find a single nail. He never would have imagined that something that huge wouldn't be bolted in place.

"Ah! It's a shark! A shark!" Tony pulled at Zoro's sleeve and pointed at the enormous fish lazily swimming into view just behind the two divers.

Little Luffy swung his legs of the edge of the bench and laughed, "They're gonna be eaten up!"

"Luffy!" Ace scolded his cousin while Tony wailed in horror and Zoro tried to comfort him, "Don't talk about people getting eaten!"

In the tank, Sanji saw the shark first. Zoro saw him signal Camie and the two of them kept an eye on the six-foot monster as it glided past. "Oh my. He snuck up on us!" Camie turned back to the audience when the shark passed out of sight, "Don't worry though guys. We keep all our fish well-fed so they don't feel like they need to eat our divers or the other fish. But we would like your help!" She tapped her goggles, "We can't see behind us with these on so we need you guys to give us the hand signal when sharks and stingrays are nearby. Do you think you can do that?"

There was a chorus of 'yes' from the children in the crowd and the two divers proceeded to teach the kids some simple hand-signals. Zoro leaned back and enjoyed the hypnotic parade of fish swimming by. They would have to come here more often. He hadn't felt this relaxed in weeks - even surrounded by a roomful of excited, noisy kids.

The divers went on with their presentation and Tony happily gave the divers signals for every shark that came into view. Zoro patted his head encouragingly, "You're doing great, Tony!"

Zoro got the uncanny feeling again that the male diver was watching him throughout the show. Sanji waved and made a few other signs when Zoro stopped watching the fish and gave him his attention. He had no clue what the guy was trying to say though. When The diver didn't see the response he wanted, he swam closer to Camie and interrupted her monologue about the live reef environment in the tank. She watched him sign for a minute before laughing breathily into her microphone, "Sanji and I know some more sign-language to make it easier to communicate in the water. He wanted to add that our giant sea anemones that I was describing would normally look like big, green sunflowers - like the gentleman's hair sitting down in front. But they are scared because we are swimming too close so they are closed up and you can't see them very well."

Zoro slumped in his seat as he felt every eye turn to stare at him. He blushed up to the roots of his damn green hair as Ace chuckled beside him. "That guy is definitely into you."

"Well he's a shi-ah a big idiot!"

Ace hummed thoughtfully, "I'd sleep with him."

"Ace!"

"I've always had a thing for hot blondes in skin-tight suits."

Zoro groaned while his best friend chuckled deviously and tried to hide his embarrassment behind one hand, "Oh my god please shut up. There are KIDS here!"

He was saved from further humiliation by a giant ray coming into view. "It's so big!" Tony's eyes were huge with amazement.

It was a striking sight. The fish dwarfed the two divers as it glided nearer. Luffy bounced in his seat and chortled, "They're gonna get eaten!"

"LUFFY!" The kids nearby began to cry - including Tony. Ace groaned in misery under the weight of parents' angry looks. "Let's go get some more mozzarella sticks from the cafeteria before you start a riot..."

Zoro sent his friend a sympathetic look, "We'll meet you guys after the show."

Ace nodded and unceremoniously threw his cousin over his shoulder, "C'mon you terrible pirate! Let's go invade the food stand!"

The pair of them wandered off making 'pirate' sounds. Grinning at Ace's antics, Zoro soothed Tony's sobbing by bringing his attention back to the divers and the ray, "Look! It's a nice fish. They don't look scared of it."

As if on cue, Sanji swam closer to the ray and lazily rolled in the water so he was under the fish looking up at its belly. Camie introduced the gentle giant with a wave at her partner, "That big guy is Bubba, our biggest manta ray. He is seventeen feet wide from fin to fin and he weighs over two thousand pounds. He's very sweet and he only eats teeny tiny krill and small fish, just like whales. Our aquarium is one of the few with a tank big enough to have manta rays because they need a lot of room!"

Zoro was fascinated as Sanji skillfully performed a half-somersault and playfully rolled a couple of times as he swam back to join Camie near the middle of the viewing window. He made it look easy, despite his awkward tank and gear. Zoro couldn't help but agree with Ace when the blonde's tricks provided him with an excellent view of how that wetsuit stretched over his ass like a second skin. The jury was still out about his face - being obscured by goggles, but Zoro had to admit that the bastard had a nice body. He was all lean and long and reminded Zoro of the powerful sharks that circled in the tank.

The show concluded with the divers posing for pictures before Camie told the audience that she would be available for more pictures in the next room. After blowing kisses and waving goodbye to the crowd, she swam off to the side and out of sight. However, Sanji lingered, his short, blonde hair floating around his head like a small, silky cloud. He patted at the glass until Zoro cocked his head in confusion. Wasn't the show over? Sanji pointed at him then pointed in the direction that Camie had left. Zoro blinked. That looked like a request to meet... The diver repeated the gesture and this time Zoro nodded in answer. He got a thumbs-up and a huge smile in reply before Sanji replaced his mouthpiece and swam after Camie.

Zoro sat for a little while longer, watching the fish with Tony as they waited for the crowd to thin. They laughed as a small stingray nibbled at the window until it was chased off by a slow-swimming whale shark. "Hey let's get a picture with it!" Zoro dragged a giggling Tony over close to the big fish and crouched down next to him before pulling out his phone to take a selfie. They got some cool photos before taking a couple of sillier ones with their tongues out and their eyes crossed. Turning around to look at the fish again, Zoro remembered the diver's invitation. "C'mon. Let's go see what's next."

"Okay!" Tony slipped his little hand into Zoro's and they casually strolled into the next room. Or at least he hoped he looked casual. His heart was beating fast as he wondered if maybe he was reading too much into the blonde's teasing. Maybe the guy was just wanting to make sure he didn't sue the aquarium for being mocked...

There was still a fairly long line of people waiting to take a picture with Camie. She was still in her wetsuit and most of her gear, but the teenage girl she was currently posing with was wearing her goggles. Zoro had to wonder if she was cold as he watched her ponytail drip on the floor. He didn't see Sanji though.

"Hey there. I was starting to think you weren't coming."

Zoro turned and came face to face with a familiar grin. Sanji had changed into a blue tee with the aquarium's logo, sandals and khaki shorts. His damp, curling blonde hair framed sparkling grey-blue eyes as his grin broadened into a full smile. Little droplets of water were dampening his shirt and clinging to the fine, light hairs of his eyebrows. Looking close, Zoro thought that he could see the little hairs at the end of the blonde's eyebrows growing in mirror images of a curl. He was so busy trying see if those strange eyebrows were for real that he didn't realize that he'd been openly staring until Sanji cleared his throat, "So, uh... Do you bring your son here a lot?"

Zoro looked down and met Tony's curious eyes, "Actually this is my little brother. This is our first time here." He was rewarded by a big smile and a squeeze to his hand. Even more than a year after moving in, Tony could be insecure about the acceptance of his foster family and Zoro never missed a chance to let him know that he belonged.

"Oh?" Zoro met Sanji's warm gaze once more, "I can give you guys a special tour... I mean... If you're interested?"

Zoro found that he actually was interested - more so in the man than the tour. Sanji was attractive, and Zoro couldn't help but feel flattered by the blonde's obvious flirting. He opened his mouth to accept Sanji's offer, but Ace called his name, interrupting with his family's trademark bad timing, "Zoro! Hey, who's this?"

Sanji raised his eyebrows and looked curiously between the two of them. Zoro could practically see the wheels turning in the blonde's head and he quickly explained, "Ace is my friend. His cousin, Luffy, likes to play with Tony a lot too."

"Just a friend, huh?" Zoro blushed at Ace's pointed tone as his friend wrapped his arm around Zoro's shoulders. He gave Sanji an approving look, "You must be the hot diver!"

Sanji smirked at Zoro's stricken expression and offered Ace his hand, "I'm Sanji. I was just offering your friend here a private tour..."

Ace shook the diver's hand while giving Zoro a sly, sidelong glance, "It's nice of you to offer a tour, but the little guys have to be home by seven-thirty. Besides isn't the aquarium closing soon?"

Even as Ace was speaking, a friendly female voice gave a reminder over the speakers that the facility was closing. Zoro could see that Sanji was disappointed. He was too, but he had to get Tony home. Ace suddenly tugged him to the side and spoke softly so only Zoro could hear, "If you want to do this I can bring Tony back with me. We can have a sleepover and shit. Luffy will love it!"

"Really?" Zoro looked over to where Sanji had crouched down and was talking animatedly to Luffy about sharks. When he noticed Zoro watching he flashed that stunning smile and Zoro's heart fluttered in answer.

Ace must have noticed something in his expression because he patted Zoro's back with a grin, "I'll tell the kiddos and I can call your dad. You go have fun. You gotta tell me all the details later though!"

"Thanks Ace..." Zoro smiled back at Sanji who stood and straightened his shirt, "It's been a long time since... You know..."

Nodding in agreement Ace gave his back a quick rub, "I do know. It's about time you moved on... Oh! I have a gift!"

Zoro watched curiously as Ace dug around in the bag that held Luffy's extra pull-ups and snacks. His grin was triumphant as he found what he was looking for and he pressed a couple of condoms and a tiny tube of lube into Zoro's hand. He gave Ace an incredulous look, "Really?!"

Ace shrugged, "Girls like babies. Now scram!"

He gave Zoro an encouraging push before striding over to Tony and squatting beside him with a serious expression, "I have a special mission for you. It's a pirate mission."

"A pirate mission?" Tony's eyes were wide and shining with excitement.

"Yep! I need the dread pirate Chopper. Will he help me?"

Tony nodded eagerly and Ace grinned, "Good! Your mission, pirate Chopper, is to find a present at the gift store and then come to my house for a sleepover party!"

Tony squealed happily and followed Ace as he led the rambunctious children to the gift shop. Even when they were out of sight, Zoro could hear Luffy yelling and laughing and Tony's shrieks of delight. He owed Ace big for this.

"So..." Sanji moved closer, watching him with hopeful eyes, "Are you up for it? The tour I mean..."

Zoro nodded, feeling a flutter deep in his gut when Sanji gave him the biggest smile yet, "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Okay! First let's get you a shirt..."

Sanji gestured for him to follow and led the way to a door marked 'staff only'. Zoro followed him down a series of hallways - almost getting left behind a couple of times when he stopped to stare into spaces that opened into rooms full of lights, support poles, and ladders leading up the backsides of enormous aquarium tanks. They reached a room full of lockers, and while Zoro looked around curiously, Sanji went straight for one and skillfully spun open the combination lock. "I have a spare shirt you can try on. No one will bother us if you're in uniform."

Zoro took the shirt offered him and eyed Sanji skeptically, "Are you gonna get into trouble for this?"

The grin on Sanji's face was mischievous as he waggled his eyebrows, "Only if we get caught!"

Snorting Zoro peeled off his shirt and shifted Sanji's soft, blue tee until he found the opening at the bottom. Pulling the shirt over his head, Zoro felt it stretch across his shoulders and chest. The fit was snug but not uncomfortable. As he tugged at the hem he became aware of Sanji's intense gaze. The blonde licked his lips absently as his eyes trailed up Zoro's body. There were a few pulse-skipping moments where they just looked at each other before Sanji commented in a delightfully husky tone, "It looks good on you... Are you ready?"

Not trusting his voice, Zoro gave a curt nod and followed as Sanji took him down yet ANOTHER hallway. He wrinkled his nose as they entered a room that smelled strongly of fish. A young man with short, pink hair stood at a counter chopping up small tentacles. Zoro couldn't stop himself from pulling a disgusted face at the assortment of unidentifiable fish-parts surrounding the young man.

Sanji casually picked up a small, plastic bucket packed with little food fish. "I'm taking care of the rays on the second floor."

"Okay, Sanji." The young man adjusted his glasses with the relatively-clean heel of his palm as he gave Zoro a curious look.

Zoro didn't stick around to introduce himself as Sanji swept out the door. Fish-boy could just come his own conclusions. He jogged a little to catch up with Sanji, "Are we seriously going to feed the fish?"

Sanji hefted his bucket, "You don't want to?"

"No, it's not that..."

Giving him a knowing grin, Sanji took him up a flight of stairs and out into the largest room on the second floor. It was completely empty, and the lack of people made Zoro more impressed at the size of the facility. It just felt so much bigger with only him and Sanji.

"Over here!"

Zoro joined Sanji by a special tank in a side room that resembled a shallow wading pool with walls made of fake rock. A nearby sign advertised this tank as a place to touch stingrays and to hear lectures about them at certain times. By the time Zoro had read the sign the blonde had already kicked off his sandals and stepped over the side of the enclosure. "C'mon. I promise it's not too cold!"

Watching the energetically circling rays in the tank apprehensively, Zoro shook his head, "I don't think so. I'll just stay here and watch you work."

"Chicken." Sanji snorted and gently nudged away a stingray that was flapping against his leg.

"I'm not scared! I just don't want to get wet and slimy..." Zoro watched as Sanji held a fish under the water and waited until a small ray swam over his hand before withdrawing and petting the fish's smooth back.

Looking up and meeting his gaze, Sanji grinned before wading over, "Won't you just try feeding them once? For me?"

Zoro rolled his eyes but gamely held out his hand, "Just once."

"Hold the fish between your fingers like this..." Sanji's fingers were gentle as he arranged the fish in Zoro's hold so that it stuck up above his knuckles. Zoro made a face and Sanji laughed as he tugged Zoro's hand into the water. "Just keep your hand still and let go when you feel one tug on the fish."

Zoro startled slightly when a stingray slid under his palm. Sanji's thumb rubbed calmingly against his wrist, "The cownosed rays are especially friendly."

A large stingray settled over their hands and Zoro felt a pull on the fish between his fingers. He let the food go and pulled his hand back with a laugh of amazement, "It ate it!"

Sanji rolled his eyes and petted another ray as it swam by, "What were you expecting it to do? Now do you want to feed another one or not?"

"Gimmie the bucket, blondie!"

They playfully squabbled over the fish, laughing as the excited stingrays splashed them with their fins. It didn't take long to finish feeding all the rays, and Sanji carefully climbed out of the tank. "Next time you should come in with me."

Zoro shrugged as he watched Sanji shake the excess water from his feet before slipping back into his sandals. Had Sanji just offered a second... whatever is this is? A date?

"Like hell I'll agree to that. You'll probably try to talk me into the damn shark tank too!"

Sanji laughed, "You caught me! Come on, dumbass. Let me show you my favorite spot in the whole aquarium."

After washing up, they strolled casually side-by-side through the exhibits. Sanji told him a funny story about the one time an aquarium worker tripped over an octopus that had figured out how to open the door on its tank. At one point Sanji had grabbed Zoro's hand to keep him from accidentally wandering down the wrong hallway by himself. Both men had been unwilling to let go, and Zoro was enjoying the warmth of Sanji's shoulder bumping his and the slim fingers entwined with his own.

"This is it! This is my favorite place in the whole aquarium!"

Sanji pulled him into a hallway that was built like a tunnel. The acrylic walls let them see the fish swimming all around them - even above them. Zoro had seen this part of the facility earlier with Ace, Luffy and Tony. He had liked it then but it wasn't his favorite exhibit, and he told Sanji that. Sanji snorted and informed him that it was totally different without all the other mouth-breathers fogging up the glass. He led Zoro to the middle of the tunnel before lowering himself to the floor and settling with his hands pillowed behind his head. He melodramatically rolled his eyes at Zoro as he stood staring down at the blonde, "Get down here. Your seaweed hair is blocking the view!"

Zoro grumbled as he got on the ground beside Sanji, "Why the fuck do you like to pick on my hair? There's nothing wrong with it!"

Chuckling, Sanji rolled on his side and reached out to roll a lock of Zoro's hair between his fingers, "It suits you - even though you chose to dye it a color not natural to the human species." He thoughtfully stroked his fingers through Zoro's hair before gently tugging on a few strands, "Anyway, it's fun annoying you! Your expressions are just too entertaining...!"

Scowling, Zoro pushed the blonde's hand away, "You're an asshole. I hope you get eaten by a shark!"

"I'm hurt! Here I am giving you my special tour and you call me names!"

Zoro rolled to face Sanji and scoffed, "You started it by making fun of my hair! And what's so special about seeing the same shitty tunnel I saw an hour ago?"

Sanji gave him a sly smile and scooted closer, "Well since you put it that way I guess I better do something to make this more memorable..."

His gaze caught on how Sanji's tongue wetted his lips and how the blonde was staring at his lips with half-lidded eyes. An eager shiver ran through his body when the blonde cupped his neck with one hand. Sanji's thumb was rubbing light circles against his jaw when the blonde moved in to place a light, fleeting kiss on Zoro's lips. Pulling back, Sanji's face was intent and slightly flushed as he searched Zoro's expression, "Better?"

"Better." Zoro agreed and leaned in himself to press their mouths together again.

The kiss stayed slow and sweet as both men drew closer under the soothing blue light of the aquarium around them. Zoro placed his hand on Sanji's ribs, feeling the way the blonde breathed in shuddering lungfuls of air during the brief lulls of their caress. As lips dragged languidly over lips, Zoro closed his eyes and enjoyed the tang of minerals from the tank on Sanji's skin and the scent of seawater from his mostly-dry hair.

Sanji's tongue flicked along the seam in Zoro's lips and he parted them willingly with a sigh. Making a low, choked sound in his throat, Sanji broke the kiss and backed away from Zoro's reactive attempt to follow his retreating lips. Zoro opened his eyes, frowning in concern. Had he done something wrong? He had been happy with how things were going, but maybe Sanji wasn't ready?

However, one look into Sanji's eyes - darkened into a bluer hue by arousal - reassured him that Sanji was as into this as he was. Sanji struggled to lift himself onto his hands and knees for a moment before finally untangling his long limbs. Zoro followed his movement, rolling onto his back as the blonde straddled his thighs and braced himself with a hand by Zoro's head. The blonde's free hand curled under Zoro's chin; his thumb pressing against Zoro's slicked, lower lip before sliding away as Sanji lowered himself into a deeper kiss.

Being like this left Zoro's hands free to touch as he pleased. He steadily mapped out Sanji's shoulders and back as his fingers searched out each contour of the blonde's muscles and bones. Sanji felt just as sleek and graceful under his hands as he had looked back in that tank. Zoro's eyes slid open again after having closed, unbidden, in his enjoyment, and he drank in the sight of Sanji's flushed face. He was more beautiful like that than any exhibit in this whole aquarium.

Sanji opened his eyes and met Zoro's gaze before pulling away. His shiny-wet and swollen lips curved into a warm smile as he sat back on Zoro's thighs, "What's that look for?"

Zoro shrugged and let his hands drop to Sanji's knees, "I never thought that today would have turned out like this."

Long fingers slipped under the hem of Zoro's shirt and brushed over his skin, "But that's a good thing, right?" Sanji's eyes were questioning as he flexibly bent to kiss the newly exposed skin above Zoro's navel.

All around them Zoro could see various fish shimmering like precious metals and gems in the water. Distorted ripples of light flowed over their bodies and made Sanji's eyes look even more blue - like the deep ocean. It was all like something straight out of a fairytale. Zoro's lips quirked in a smile as he answered, "Best day of my life. Although the tour guide talks too much shit."

"Shut up!" Growling playfully, Sanji stretched up and met Zoro's lips with his own in a passionate kiss.

The mood had changed and Zoro found himself rolling his hips up into the feeling of Sanji's thumbs massaging his hipbones. The blonde's tongue slipped along his, hot and slick, as Zoro spread his legs to make way for the knee nudging between them. Sanji shifted back onto one hand, and ground his knee rhythmically against Zoro's awakening length. He slid the hand that wasn't supporting him above Zoro up his shirt and across Zoro's chest. Zoro gasped into the kiss when Sanji's thumb brushed over his left nipple. Obviously noticing Zoro's reaction, Sanji stroked around the sensitive flesh there with his thumb - occasionally flicking over it and making Zoro's body jolt in response. A low moan rumbled in Zoro's chest when Sanji drew his tongue into his own mouth and sucked on it enthusiastically. In response, Zoro's hands slid up Sanji's legs to his slim waist - fingers dipping below the waistband of the blonde's shorts. Sanji stopped teasing Zoro's perked nipple and trailed his hand down his abdomen until his fingers caught on the button of Zoro's pants. Zoro broke the seal of their lips and eagerly bucked his hips into the blonde's hand. Sanji's gaze was heated and shining with lust as he slowly tugged the button open.

They both jerked violently when a door closed sharply not far off. Frozen in place, Zoro panted to catch his breath as he stared wide-eyed up at Sanji. The blonde looked equally startled as he peered around to see if they had been caught. Footsteps echoed through the tunnel, fading as whoever the door-slammer was walked away through the other rooms.

Both men slowly relaxed in the ensuing silence, and Sanji moved aside to let Zoro sit up. The blonde seated himself at Zoro's side and laughed breathlessly, "Maybe another time would be better...?"

"Another time for sure."

Sanji leaned against Zoro's side, "Give me your cellphone number."

Zoro grunted in agreement and did up his pants again before he began to hunt through his pockets, "I want yours too."

"Sure." Sanji agreed easily as he entered the information Zoro gave him. "I'll text you later after I'm out of work."

Chuckling, Zoro slipped his phone back into his pocket, "You're a terrible employee."

Sanji rolled his eyes, "It's not like I'm going to let a good-looking guy like you just walk out the door and disappear." He leaned over and kissed Zoro's cheek, his voice dropping to a husky murmur, "And now that I've hooked you, I want to get to know you. Maybe we could meet up for dinner?"

"Who said I'm 'hooked'?" But contradicting himself with a nod, Zoro agreed, "We should go to a seafood restaurant. You like fish, right?"

Sanji's jaw dropped and he stared for a moment before breaking out in loud laughter, "And after that our next date should be surf fishing on the beach! Fish themes every time!"

Zoro laughed with him, standing and helping Sanji to his feet. They held hands all the way down to the first floor where Sanji brought him to an employee exit. Sanji kissed him again, sucking at Zoro's bottom lip before letting it slide free from between his teeth, "Talk to you later."

"Yeah. Later."

Zoro went outside and reluctantly began the trek out to his car. It was the only one left in the lot. Ace was long gone, having taken Luffy and Tony back in his own vehicle. Halfway to the lot he looked back and saw Sanji still standing by the open door. The blonde waved once before vanishing back inside the aquarium. Zoro returned the wave and jogged the rest of the way to his car with a smile on his face.

He couldn't wait to see him again.


	2. Chapter 2

2.

* * *

Zoro was doing a poor job of hiding his excitement as he fidgeted on the couch, periodically pulling out his phone and tapping the screen to check the time. His older sister, Kuina, looked up from her own phone to roll her eyes. She settled more comfortably into her spot as she lounged sideways on the couch with her feet tucked under Zoro's thigh to keep her toes warm. Raising an eyebrow, she remarked dryly, "Your battery is just gonna die if you keep that up."

"Shut up, barf-breath!" Zoro growled and checked his inbox yet again just in case there was a message he had missed. It wouldn't hurt to check his Facebook account again either...

He was too preoccupied to defend himself from the sharp kick to his hip, and Kuina glared at him fiercely when he spluttered angrily and grabbed for her ankle. She delivered a few more kicks as he tried to capture her, "I told you before! Don't CALL me that, troll-face!"

"Get your smelly feet away from me, vomit queen!"

Kuina shrieked with rage and threw herself across the couch and tackled him around the neck in an attempt to catch him in a headlock. Zoro struggled to keep her from completing the move, cursing as her strong legs wound around his waist and began to squeeze. He hated her stupid judo moves.

"Guys!" Tony turned from where he was seated on the floor in front of them with a look of disapproval on his little face, "I can't hear my show!"

Zoro wheezed as Kuina put more pressure on his neck in an attempt to connect her hold and she hissed furiously in his ear, "Swear you won't say that again!"

In a last-ditch effort to survive, Zoro lurched to his feet and stumbled toward the dining room and kitchen area, "P-puke woman!"

Kuina managed to grip her other arm properly and Zoro gasped uselessly as his breathing was mercilessly constricted. He made it a few more stumbling steps into the dining area and Koshiro turned from where he was rinsing the dishes from lunch at the sink to look at them disapprovingly over the rims of his glasses, "Kuina, let your brother go this instant."

"But daaaaaad...!" She whined as she released her death grip on Zoro and dropped to her feet agilely, "He won't stop calling me those horrible names!"

Zoro rubbed his sore neck and sneered, "Well maybe you should have held it in then instead of upchucking all over me at that party like a fat kid on a carnival ride!"

Kuina turned positively scarlet as she stood there and shook with anger a moment before rushing away through the house. Koshiro sighed as they both could hear feet pounding up the stairs before a door slammed on the second floor. He frowned at Zoro until the young man guiltily avoided his gaze, "You know how humiliating that memory is for her. You shouldn't say things like that."

"Yeah, well she wasn't the one actually covered in vomit while all our friends laughed!" Zoro pointed out defensively. Koshiro simply lifted an eyebrow and Zoro dropped his head and muttered, "I'll apologize later, okay?"

"Do it now."

"Yes, sir." Zoro didn't dare to say another word as he trudged out of the kitchen, through the living room where Tony watched him pass with wide eyes, and then up the stairs. Kuina's room was the furthest one down the hall, and Zoro peeked in Perona's open door first. The youngest of his three sisters - by two minutes - popped her gum obnoxiously as she eyed him from over her bright pink laptop settled in her lap as she sat on her bed. Everything she owned was fucking pink, and her room hurt Zoro's eyes if he stared at it too long. He gave her a hopeful look, "I'll give you fifty bucks if you smooth this over for me?"

Perona shook her head, "No way, loser! She was super mad! You're so dead!" She giggled and snapped her gum again, tossing her pink extensions, "I'll wait until your corpse turns into a cute skeleton, and then I'll paint you pink and hang you on my wall! Won't that be awesome?"

"Thanks for nothing, weirdo…" Zoro grumbled and stuffed his hands in his pockets as he tried to think of how to make Kuina not-mad at him without actually apologizing. He didn't even bother checking Tashigi's room. He knew that she was out back practicing tennis with their other father.

Taking a deep breath, Zoro hesitated in front of his sister's door before politely knocking. There was a loud thump as something, probably a stuffed animal, hit the door, but Kuina didn't answer. Zoro leaned in close and heard a little sniffle. Genuinely feeling bad now, he opened the door and cautiously stepped inside, "Hey…"

Kuina glared at him tearfully before grabbing her comforter and rolling over, hiding in her covers on her bed. Zoro awkwardly ran his fingers through his hair, "Sorry for being such a jerk. I won't call you that anymore…" He thought a moment before amending, "Unless you really piss me off."

His sister didn't respond at first, but after a short time of stony silence, Zoro heard a muffled snort under the bundle of comforters. Encouraged, Zoro padded over and sat on the edge of the bed. Kunia sat up out of her cocoon of bedclothes and rubbed furiously at her eyes before smirking at him weakly, "You really, really suck at apologizing."

Zoro shrugged and Kuina crossed her arms after wiping some snot off on her sleeve, "You owe me. My chores for a week."

"No way!" Zoro balked, "I have midterms that I need to study for!"

"Two weeks!" Kuina raised an eyebrow, looking exactly like their dad.

Zoro groaned in defeat, "Fine. Just tell dad that we're cool?"

"Done." Kuina wiped her nose again before wriggling into a more comfortable cross-legged position, "Now tell me why the hell you are so uptight today? You're being more annoying than usual, and you keep checking…" She stopped and rolled her eyes as Zoro quickly swiped his phone on again, "Oh my god, see? That's what I mean! What's going on, Zoro?"

"S'nothing…" Zoro guiltily slipped his phone back into his pocket.

Kuina narrowed her eyes, "Don't make me hit you!"

Zoro held up his hands as she threateningly raised a fist, "I'm hanging out with someone today!"

Blinking, Kuina relaxed her fist slightly, "What? Who?"

"You don't know him." Zoro avoided her curious eyes as he resisted the urge to check for a text message yet again.

Kuina tilted her head to the side thoughtfully before her eyes widened, "IS IT A DATE?!"

Zoro shushed her frantically but it was too late. Perona actually bounced, she hit the bed so hard as she dashed into the room and threw herself into a sitting position next to Kuina. The two of them truly looked like the members of the triplets from hell that they were as they grinned predatorily at him. Perona pressed eagerly, "So what's his name? Is he cute? Where did you meet him? Did you sleep with him?!"

Kuina didn't even give him a chance to protest as she quickly chimed in, "Tell us! You know we're just gonna bother you until we find out anyway!"

"Jesus fuck, okay! His name is Sanji, and he works at that aquarium downtown!" Zoro looked at them pleadingly, "Please don't do anything embarrassing?"

"OH MY GOD, HE'S COMING HERE?!" Perona shrieked before jumping up off the bed and dashing for her room, "I NEED TO FIX MY MAKE-UP!"

Kuina grinned before crawling across the bed and dropping down beside him and wrapping Zoro in a strong hug, "Good for you, Zoro. I'm so glad you're putting yourself out there again."

He shrugged but leaned into his sister's comforting hold, "He came on to me actually. And it was Ace who talked me in to doing something about it."

"Well then thank you to Ace." Kunia pecked his cheek before letting him go and shoving his shoulder, "Now get the hell out of my room and fix your hair! I need to freshen up so I make a good impression. It's not every day I get to meet my little brother's new boyfriend!"

Zoro blushed as she winked at him and obediently went to fix his hair in the upstairs bathroom. After a few minutes of fussing, he felt ready and jogged down the stairs. Perona was already there, peering out the window by the door, "Oh my god, is that him?!"

"Move!" Zoro shoved her aside enough that he could see, and sure enough, a familiar blond was getting out of the passenger's side of a shiny, red convertible.

A wave of nervousness swept over him, and Zoro wiped his palms on his shirt in a nervous gesture before opening the front door and stepping out onto the broad step at the top of their entryway. Sanji grinned and waved, and Zoro waved back feeling a little giddy with excitement. He'd been looking forward to today ever since he had found out a week ago that the two of them shared a day off. He bounced on his toes impatiently as the dark-haired, female driver leaned toward Sanji and tugged his arm. The blond turned back to her and Zoro's eyebrows rose in interest when she made several quick motions with her hands - ending with an inquiring finger pointed at Sanji. He'd never seen anyone genuinely conversing in sign language before and he was absolutely fascinated when Sanji answered her, tapping the ring finger of his right hand to his thumb before continuing on to several more swift gestures that Zoro couldn't quite catch, but he swore one looked like the hand sign people used when they were talking about texting, with palms up and curled knuckles pressed together, and thumbs wiggling in mock-typing motions.

Zoro had to admit, he was pretty impressed.

Sanji loped across the front lawn and jogged up the steps, "Hey there! Sorry I'm a little late. I had to wait for my cousin to get home from work so she could give me a ride."

"That's a cool car..." Zoro let his gaze flick back to the woman in the convertible watching the two of them once more before giving Sanji his full attention, "Uh, did you want to come in for a minute?"

"Sure!" Sanji nodded cheerfully and followed Zoro inside. He waved to his cousin before pulling the door closed behind himself.

Uncertain if it was okay to talk about, Zoro asked cautiously, "I didn't know you could do real sign language. I mean beside that scuba diver shit…"

Sanji didn't look offended as he trailed after Zoro into the living room, "I learned to speak sign language when I was little because of my cousin, Robin. She's lived with us ever since I can remember."

"That's cool! I don't know if I could remember all that stuff. I mean, it looked pretty complicated out there."

Sanji looked a little smug at Zoro's amazement and opened his mouth to reply, but their moment was interrupted by Perona, who was practically vibrating on the couch, obviously failing to look nonchalant and unable to wait any more, "YOUR NAME IS SANJI?"

"Fuck, Perona, don't screech like that!"

"Language, Zoro!" Kuina reminded as she entered the living room behind the two of them.

Sanji's head was jerking from side to side as he tried to take in the flood of Zoro's family members. Koshiro appeared in the doorway to the dining area, quietly wiping his hands with a dishtowel as he watched them all with a smile. Tony froze a moment looking up at Sanji before recognition shone in his eyes and he launched himself at the blond, babbling with excitement about pirates and fish and god-knows-what-else. Zoro rolled his eyes and started the introductions, "My sisters, Kuina... And Perona is the pink one."

"Nice to meet you." Sanji bobbed his head at the two of them as he patted Tony's wild hair.

The little boy clung tightly to the blond's leg and Zoro snorted, "You know Tony."

Sanji crouched to let the little boy throw his arm around his neck, and he stood with Tony held securely against his side, "Of course I remember my little buddy!"

Tony giggled with delight held tight to Sanji. Zoro hoped his poor date could breathe. "And that's my dad, Koshiro."

Sanji stepped forward and offered a hand, "Nice to meet you, sir."

"Likewise." Koshiro shook the blond's hand with a smile, "Are you two planning to stay for dinner?"

Zoro shook his head as he grabbed Tony and tickled him to get his foster-brother to let go of Sanji, "We have plans."

Koshiro nodded before taking a seat in the chair by the couch, "So what is your name, young man? And how did you meet my son?"

"His name is Sanji!" Perona interjected excitedly, "And he met Zoro at the aquarium!"

Raising his eyebrows, Koshiro smiled, "How interesting!"

"He's a diver!" Tony chirped in Zoro's arms, "He swims with sharks! It's so cool!"

Kuina spoke up too, "And _he_ asked out _Zoro_!"

Zoro groaned, "Would you guys please shut up?! You're going to make him never want to come back!"

"I hope that's not true." Koshiro crossed his legs and let his his clasped hands rest in his lap, "I'd love to have you over for dinner sometime. I know my husband and my other daughter would like the chance to meet you too."

Sanji nodded sincerely, "I would enjoy that. My old man makes a killer blueberry cobbler. I could bring that along…"

Koshiro's eyes twinkled behind his glasses, "That sounds fantastic. I'll have Zoro find out a time that will work for all of us then?"

"Absolutely!" Sanji smiled charmingly.

Zoro put Tony down and grabbed the blond by the wrist, tugging him backwards and speaking rapidly before the next round of chaos could begin, "We have a reservation and we REALLY need to go now, so...!"

"Bye, Sanji!" Perona wiggled her fingers in farewell.

Tony looked heartbroken, "Do you have to go?"

"Come here, sport…" Koshiro stood and scooped up the little boy, "Call if you need anything, Zoro!" He walked off into the kitchen after giving Sanji a friendly nod - probably to give Tony a treat.

Zoro successfully dragged Sanji away from his family and back outside to his front step. His ears were burning with embarrassment as he dropped the blond's hand, "Uh, my car is right over there…"

He clattered down the cement stairs and strode swiftly to where his old sedan was parked in the driveway. Realizing Sanji wasn't behind him, he turned to see Kuina holding him close by the collar just inside the doorway, and was whispering intensely into the blond's ear. Zoro groaned and unlocked his car, sliding morosely into the driver's seat. He let his forehead drop to the top of his steering wheel in misery. Why couldn't his family just act NORMAL for once?!

Sanji got into the passenger's side a moment later and Zoro straightened, starting to apologize right away as the blond buckled himself in, "I'm so, so sorry about all… that. My family is a little…"

Cutting him off mid-sentence, Sanji leaned over and cupped his cheek with a lightly calloused palm before kissing him warmly, "I like your family. They're interesting and they care about you a lot." Sanji pecked his lips again before settling back in his seat with a grin, "Your sister threatened to feed me to Perona's hamster, you know."

"That thing is evil… Fucking growled at me the other day, I swear!" Zoro grumbled as he started the car and pulled out of the driveway.

"Scary! I don't want to risk that!" Sanji laughed, "Well I guess I'll just have to show you a good time!"

Zoro felt his ears grow warm at the blond's suggestive eyebrow waggle, and he jerked his gaze away from Sanji's face before his thoughts went tripping into the gutter. The gap in conversation was just beginning to become uncomfortable when, Sanji suddenly reached over and turned up the cd that had been playing softly in the background, "Holy shit is this the King Snipers? I fucking love their songs!" He hummed along as the catchy rock tune boomed through the car radio.

Making a turn at the next intersection, Zoro spared a glance over to the blond and raised his voice to be heard over the lead singer, "You like this band?"

"Of course! Burning Down the Flag is definitely their best album, but this one isn't bad either."

Zoro shook his head in mock disappointment, "True fans know that the lyrics in God Among Men are better!"

"Spoken like a true wannabe hipster…!" Turning down the song as it ended, Sanji lounged back against his seat, "So have you ever eaten at this place we're going before? Or is your taste in food as shitty as favorite albums? Because only an idiot wouldn't recognize the superior instrumentals featured in Call Me Captain. Which is NOT on this cd!"

"Fuck you, poser. I bet you think that Truth in Lies was their first single! And no, I haven't been there before, but I heard that it's really good… We can go somewhere else if you want?" He smirked, "But don't even think about changing my cd!"

Sanji flipped him off and shrugged, "This is probably your ONLY cd by the best band ever, because you and your hair are lame; so it's not like I have a choice! As for the food, you already made reservations and everything. We might as well stick to the plan. Do they only serve sushi? Or do they have other types of cuisine?"

Oh shit. Zoro gripped the steering wheel tighter and cursed his own stupidity as he wondered if Sanji even ATE fish! He'd never actually gotten an answer the one time he'd asked, and he'd just assumed that since Sanji seemed to love everything about the ocean so much that he'd like sushi too. Only he could fuck up so badly on their first real date. "Uh, shit… You do eat fish, right? I mean you're not some sort of weird 'fish rights' activist are you?"

Sanji snorted, "You know my major is aquaculture, right? I'm all about eating fish and their friends!"

Zoro rolled his eyes playfully as he pulled his car into the lot and parked, "My little brother would cry if he heard you say that."

"You're just jealous that he adores me," Sanji replied cheerfully and unbuckled his seatbelt before joining Zoro in leaving the vehicle, "Besides, if I didn't eat them, or at least threaten to, how else would I strike terror into the hearts of the naughty sharks who think I may be a tasty snack?"

"You're horrible! To think that you could heartlessly bully those poor sharks!" Zoro couldn't help chuckling as he locked up his car.

Sanji had a mischievous sparkle in his blue-grey eyes as he put on an insincere pout, "Asshole... I can't believe my hot date is making such terrible accusations about me! It's not like I sit in front of the fish and eat their brethren while they watch!" He tipped his head to side thoughtfully before smirking, "Well there was that one time…"

Zoro's heart fluttered pleasantly in his chest at Sanji's casual compliment, and he boldly grabbed the blond's hand, "Come on already, Captain Nemo. Maybe we can get some as takeout so you can be a creep and eat it threatenly in front of the fish later."

Sanji laughed brightly and went along as Zoro pulled him by the hand into the restaurant.

They were seated right away, and the two of them struggled to hold in their laughter at the large koi fish mural painted on the wall beside them. Zoro broke first and muttered, "They look delicious…" Sanji's eyes went wide before he slapped a hand over his mouth to muffle his loud laughter. Zoro felt ridiculously pleased with himself, chuckling himself as he watched the blond curl over, shaking with helpless giggles.

They barely managed to compose themselves enough to place their order, earning themselves a disapproving look from their long-faced waiter. It was so easy to talk to Sanji, and Zoro found himself sharing personal things; like how he was considering switching his major from an athletic trainer to physical therapy because he wanted to work with injured soldiers. He hadn't told either of his fathers that yet. However Sanji didn't judge him, or make him feel like he was stupid for wanting to change his career path halfway through college. He listened carefully the whole time; asking clever questions about the facilities he was interested in working for, and if he'd considered pursuing internships… He never talked this much, but he wanted Sanji to know who he was and have the blond accept him.

And when Sanji talked about himself, he couldn't tear his eyes away. Sanji talked with his whole body; all nimble hands, sharp shoulders and shining eyes as he told Zoro about the injured sea turtle that he was put in charge of and how much he loved the rescue program. Zoro didn't know a damn thing about turtles or 'carapace fractures', but he was more than happy to ask just to see Sanji's excitement as he rambled on about cold laser therapy and special diets to boost immunities.

Their meal long finished, they were still talking while sipping their gradually cooling coffees when Sanji paused and pulled out his buzzing phone, "Sorry, it's Robin. I told her that I'd check in around eight."

"Is it really that late?" Zoro looked around in surprise. Sure enough, the dinner crowd had noticeably thinned, leaving only them and few other couples in the large dining room.

Sanji finished his texting and slipped his phone back into his pocket with a smile, "Want to go walk around? I thought I saw some interesting shops when we were driving in."

"Sure." Zoro made certain to leave a generous tip to apologize for hogging the table, and followed Sanji outside.

"Do you mind if I smoke?" Zoro shook his head, and the blond smiled gratefully before pulling a nearly-empty pack from his back pocket, "I used to smoke two packs a day, but I cut back a little before I started working at the aquarium. I still can't seem to quit completely though."

Shrugging, Zoro thought that he didn't mind. Not when he could stand and watch how Sanji's pale lips wrapped around the filter, and the way the thin wisps of smoke slipped through the flyaway hairs of his bangs. The moment of quiet between them was just as easy as their dinner conversation, and Zoro just felt content as he observed and learned all the little movements of Sanji's fingers as they played with his gold zippo lighter.

When Sanji smiled and reached out for him, smoke curling lightly from the cherry of his cigarette, Zoro laced their fingers together and let himself fall into Sanji pace. They wandered quietly together down the shadowed street. Most of the shops were closed, but Sanji squeezed his hand and pointed out a lit window, "Let's go in there!"

A bell jangled merrily overhead and Zoro wrinkled his nose at the smell of animals. Sanji threw away his finished cigarette and came up behind him, shoving him inside playfully, "Do they have rabbits? I wanna hold a rabbit!"

"Rabbits are in the back."

Zoro eyed the strange shopkeeper with his blond dreads, wide smirk, and pink, heart-shaped eyeglasses, "Uh, can we hold one?"

"You kill it, you buy it, brother."

"Right." Zoro shuddered and followed Sanji deeper into the shop.

The store was small but it seemed clean, and there were fewer animals than he expected since it turned out each critter had a nice large cage. Three fluffy-looking bunnies were minding their business in their cages and ignoring them in general. "They look so soft!" Sanji crouched to grin at a black rabbit that had large, white patches and floppy ears. He stuck his finger into the cage and the beast came over to snuffle at him.

"That thing is going to bite you."

Sanji snorted, "I am loved by everyone, you, on the other hand, have an antagonizing hair color and would probably lose a finger."

"Shut up!" Growling, Zoro opened the cage and only hesitated a moment before carefully lifting the rabbit into his arms. It immediately cuddled against his grey sweater, and Zoro carefully ran a finger down a silky ear. He grinned triumphantly, "See?"

Sanji rolled his eyes with a grin, "I'm sure that rabbit is old and blind."

Zoro scoffed, "Liar, it's fine. It just totally likes me more."

The blond's cheeks were red and he was studying Zoro's face with a small smile as before the blond reached out to gently stroke the content rabbit. Zoro shivered when fingertips brushed his chest, pulling slightly on the weave of his sweater, and goosebumps rose on his skin under his two layers of shirts. Leaning in close, Sanji pressed a brief, soft kiss to his lips, "I totally like you more."

Licking his lips, Zoro stared at Sanji's flushed face and bright eyes before quickly returning the rabbit to its cage. However, when he drew near, intent on continuing what Sanji had started, the blond playfully evaded him and slipped around a corner. Zoro followed and found him looking at a wall of fish tanks.

"I always had freshwater tanks growing up. Goldfish, tetras, kissing gouramis… It was a lot of fun." Sanji was still adorably pink when he turned to smile at him, "Do you have any pets?"

Zoro shook his head, "Perona has that fucking demon hamster, and we have a family cat but I've never really bothered with pets"

Sanji raised an eyebrow, "Seriously? That's just sad…" He glanced at the brightly colored fish before grinning at Zoro, "You should get a fish! They're cute and easy to care for!"

"Cute…?" Zoro drew close to a tank to peer at the puke-colored fish swimming around inside, "This one looks like an ugly mermaid!"

Sanji leaned against him to look, "Well for one thing that's a MALE betta fish, and I'm pretty sure it matches your hair."

Zoro snorted, "It looks like chewed grass."

"Exactly."

"Fuck you. How do you know it's a boy anyway? It's tail is all frilly and shit…"

"Oh my god…" Sanji laughed and straightened, "You are SO getting that fish!"

Zoro grumbled, but Sanji cheerfully ignored him and turned to look at the boxes of aquariums and other equipment in the aisle behind them. He began to place all kinds of shit in Zoro's arms, "Why the fuck do I need a castle?!"

Sanji explained with a patient tone, "Because mermaid princesses need castles!"

"That THING is not a princess! You said it was a boy!"

Laughing, the blond added a little bottle of fish food to the pile, "But he's a pretty boy so it's fine."

Zoro scowled, until Sanji came over and kissed his cheek, "Let me get you the fish? It would make me happy."

Fucking hell, but he couldn't say no when this blond bastard with him with those shimmering, sea-colored eyes… "Fine… But I want the skull too!" Sanji grinned smugly and added it to the pile.

Zoro had a hard time believing the ONE damn fish really needed all this shit, but Sanji insisted. The shopkeeper kept smirking at him as he rang everything up. If he wasn't on a date he would have punched the asshole and ran by now. Instead, Zoro just felt plain embarrassed as the guy rang up the sparkly yellow castle, and all the other weird stuff Sanji had picked out.

In the end they walked out with everything Sanji had decided on, and Zoro had a ridiculous armful of bags and boxes while Sanji gleefully carried the fish in its little plastic bag. The blond gently bumped his arm and asked, "So what are you going to name him?"

"Fish."

"That's not a name you cretin!"

Zoro rolled his eyes and shifted his armful of purchases, "Just fucking name it yourself then?"

Sanji held the bag up to eye-level before grinning slyly in his direction, "Ugly Mermaid Princess."

"NO."

Cackling, the blond bumped him again with his shoulder, "Too late! You gave me naming privileges and now it's official!"

"Like fuck it is! I'm not calling it that!"

"Don't you listen to him, Ugly…" Sanji crooned at the circling fish, "Your name is just fine. Suits you and your fish-daddy perfectly!"

Zoro shuddered, "I will fucking PAY you to never call me a 'fish-daddy' again. Jesus!"

Sanji just laughed at him, and Zoro wondered how it was fair that he was still attractive even when he was being a colossal dick.

While they were loading their purchases into the car, Sanji's phone went off again and he gave Zoro an apologetic look before checking the text, "Oh shit. Robin's waiting for me. She has work early so she needs me to come home..."

Zoro nodded, but he felt a twinge of melancholy at the thought of their date ending, "We better get back then."

Sliding into the passenger's seat, Sanji sent him a half-smile, "I'm picking the music though…! Can I sync my mp3 player to this thing?"

"My car, my music, blondie!"

Sanji flipped him off and proceeded to fiddle with his console. Zoro retaliated by pinching his side until he squirmed away, but the blond wasn't deterred for long. The two of them squabbled over the radio the whole ride back to Zoro's home, and it felt like they were pulling into his driveway far too soon.

Both of them fell quiet as Zoro parked the car carefully and shut it off. Reluctant to leave, he turned and studied Sanji; the blond's handsome features were tinged with gold from the nearby streetlight, and the poor light made his eyes look so mysteriously dark and blue. Zoro awkwardly leaned over the gearshift, placing his hand on the middle console for balance. Their gazes locked, Sanji licked his lips before meeting him halfway...

The kiss was slow and sweet, and with no more contact than the press of their mouths. Sanji took his breath away with each careful drag of his lips, and it wasn't long before the blond was prompting his lips to part with a warm tongue before teasing him with little kitten licks. Zoro huffed and pressed more insistently against him, and Sanji tilted his head to slot their mouths together for a deeper, filthier kiss; his slender fingers curling around the side of Zoro's neck and the blond's thumb stroking his pulse…

The Sanji's phone buzzed insistently and the blond placed a soothing peck on Zoro's panting mouth before pulling away to check his phone. He looked up with a sigh, and his unhappy expression was clearly illuminated by glowing phone, "I have to go." Leaning over again, he reached out for Zoro and pressed their foreheads together, "Listen, I had an amazing time tonight, and I want to see you again. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

When Zoro managed to gather his thoughts to respond with a nod, Sanji placed one last lingering kiss on his tingling lips, "Make sure you set up the tank properly tonight." He smiled before climbing out of the car, "Bye, Zoro."

"Bye…"

Zoro hurriedly climbed out of his car and watched Sanji walk down the drive and get into his cousin's car that was parked at the curb. Zoro waved goodbye as they drove off and watched until the taillights grew small, and then the car turned around a corner and he couldn't see them at all. Behind him the light above the front door flicked on and Zoro released his breath in a sigh. He wished yet again that tonight hadn't had to end so soon…

More than a little frustrated, Zoro began to collect the various fish-related things from his car and worked until he got everything in one armload with the damn fish balanced on top. Mihawk was waiting for him at the door, and he held it open without a word but the sharp quirk to his eyebrow said a lot. Zoro just scowled and clomped his way into the kitchen.

Koshiro was wrapping up a tray of brownies, but seeing Zoro, he stopped and pulled out a small plate from the cabinet above him before nudging a large, gooey brownie out of the tray with a knife. He set the plate on the table right beside where Zoro had carefully dumped his gifts, "What's all this?"

"I got a fish."

"Oh?" Koshiro inspected the small creature with a smile, "Seems like you had a nice night?"

"Yeah, I…" Zoro felt himself blush as he thought about Sanji's warm hand, and his laugh, and the heat of his lips, "I really like him, dad."

"I'm happy for you." Koshiro hugged him around the shoulders before padding through the kitchen to the family room, "I'm going to bed. Please remember to clean up after yourself?"

"Night, dad." Zoro nodded and opened the aquarium box to dig out the instructions.

He looked it over once before giving up and going upstairs. Knocking softly on the door next to the master bedroom, Zoro fidgeted impatiently until His oldest sister, Tashigi, opened the door a crack. She scowled at him and adjusted her glasses, "What do you want? I was studying."

"Sorry. I know you have homework… But I really need your help so Ugly will survive the night."

Raising her eyebrow in a way that clearly resembled Mihawk, she crossed her arms, "Did you just call me ugly?"

"No!" A shushing sound from the nearby bedrooms had him dropping his voice, "I got a fish but I have no clue how to set the aquarium up?"

Tashigi eyed him for a moment before smiling, "Fine but you have to tell me about this date. Kuina will be so jealous that I found out first!"

"Deal."

Following him downstairs, Tashigi wasted no time and began to open the various boxes while she questioned him, "I heard about how he picked you up at the aquarium. Is that his full time job? How old is he? Is he a college graduate? What did you two talk about?"

Zoro kept his answers short while he nibbled his brownie, but he knew better than to try to hide anything from his older sister. She had always had a way of finding out the things he tried to keep from her anyway. She kept asking little things about Sanji as she assembled the filter and began to set up the aquarium. Finally she tapped the half-full tank and instructed, "You should take it downstairs into your room first before filling it the rest of the way. Make sure the water is room temperature and let your fish stay in the bag while floating in the water for at least twenty minutes."

She brushed a few loose, dark hairs behind her ear before giving him a half-smile, "He sounds like a nice guy. Are you going to see him again?"

"I hope so…"

Tashigi nodded, "Okay. I want to meet him next time though. Try to have the next date when I'm not practicing?"

Zoro shrugged, "I'll see."

Rolling her eyes, Tashigi gave him a brief hug, "I still can't believe you named that poor fish, Ugly."

"Sanji named it. Blame him!"

"Right." She walked a little ways toward the family room before hesitating, "I know it's been hard for you, and we're all happy to see you with someone again, but please don't think you have to get into another relationship right now if you don't feel ready."

Zoro flinched, but shrugged one-shoulder, trying to look casual, "I'm okay, Tash. Really. I feel like I'm over everything, you know?"

She looked at him carefully for a long moment before nodding, "I'll beat him to death with a tennis racket if he hurts you though."

"Love you, Tash…" Zoro couldn't help but smile at her overprotectiveness.

"Love you too, Zozo." She smiled at him fondly before returning upstairs to her room.

More than ready to call it a night, Zoro carried his new aquarium down the basement steps to the large room he shared with Tony to finish setting up the tank. It took a few trips to the basement bathroom to fill the tank properly with a pitcher, but when he was done, Ugly was swimming happily around his new home. Zoro watched it explore for a little while before collapsing onto his bed with a groan. Tony stirred in his bed across the room, but fortunately he was a heavy sleeper and he didn't wake up.

Pulling out his phone, Zoro's heart jumped when he saw that he had a text from Sanji. He opened it eagerly, not sure what Sanji wanted. He was pleasantly surprised when a picture popped up of the blond, shirtless and grinning impishly.

_Sweet dreams. ;D_


	3. Chapter 3

Throughout the week Zoro found himself agonizing over daily texts and snapchat messages from Sanji. The blond sent multiple teasing selfies of himself around his home - usually scantily clad in only thin boxers - and even a few of himself at work; his diving suit partially unzipped so it hung loose from his hips and left his bare chest exposed, displaying his gleaming, wet skin. Frankly it was ridiculous how sexy Sanji was without even trying, (although Zoro suspected that the cheeky bastard was deliberately tormenting him). Zoro on the other hand was a mess. Every time, he rewrote his replies to Sanji's clever and smartass texts over and over, doing so, so many times, that in the end he got fed up and resigned himself to short, boring answers. Snapchat was even more stressful. He hated every picture he took of himself, and he was far too embarrassed to go through with sending any selfies with his shirt off - no matter how many damn, suggestive winky emojis Sanji sent. He wished that they could just meet up and talk; so when the blond mentioned that the aquarium needed volunteers to help with an event, Zoro was quick to offer help...

"Can I use the milk?"

Kuina just sneered at him in response, and Zoro sighed in annoyance as she pushed the plastic gallon further out of his reach along the surface of the large, kitchen island. Gritting his teeth to prevent himself from snapping at her in irritation, Zoro slid off his wooden barstool and marched around to the other side of the island to get the damn milk himself. Kuina pointedly ignored him the whole time as he retrieved the half-empty gallon and returned to his seat to pour its contents over his bran cereal.

He knew exactly why his sister was being such an insufferable bitch today. Kuina had a judo match later, and it was the family tradition to go cheer each other on whenever any of them was competing. Only this time Zoro wasn't going. He'd told them all at dinner last night that he had volunteered to help Sanji out at the aquarium's barbeque fundraiser, and that he wouldn't be able to make the competition. After a moment of stony silence, Kuina had blown up into a full blown fit - screaming ugly names at him and accusing Zoro of letting his new 'fling' come between him and family. She crossed the line when she cruelly pointed out that it was only a matter of time before someone like Sanji got fed up with Zoro and found a guy less pathetic to be with - if he hadn't already. Zoro hadn't been able to keep his temper in check after that, and the two of them had ended up on their feet in a insult-laden shouting match by the table until Mihawk had physically dragged the two of them from room. Their father had thrown them onto the couch and proceeded to deliver the most terrifying lecture of their lives with his favorite fencing sword in hand as Koshiro tried to comfort a wailing Tony back in the dining room.

Obviously, Kuina was still pissed.

Zoro understood the pressure that she was under; he really did. This match was important for her USA Judo ranking, and ultimately her position in the IJF. If she lost this match it could be another four or more years before she would be ranked high enough to try out for the women's Olympic team. However, her anxiety over today's match didn't give her license to be an ass about him missing the match, and he sure as hell wasn't going to coddle her shitty attitude by bailing on Sanji. Especially since she had never apologized for the shit she'd said. He hadn't either, and so he finished his breakfast without saying another word to her; flicking through the photos on Sanji's Facebook profile on his phone.

"Are you kids ready?"

Zoro shrugged one shoulder in reply to Koshiro's soft question and tucked his phone into his pocket before turning and sliding off his stool, "Sure, whatever."

Koshiro gave Zoro an unimpressed look at his short tone, and he ducked his head apologetically as he grabbed his dirty dishes, "I just need to grab my sneakers. Do you want me to check on Tony?"

His dad's eyes crinkled at the corners behind his glasses as he smiled slightly, "Thank you, Zoro."

Taking his dishes to the sink, Zoro watched as Koshiro sat down on the stool beside Kuina and rubbed her tense shoulders. Not wanting to be around his sister and her bullshit any more, he hurried down to his basement bedroom to get Tony. The little boy was flopped in a beanbag in front of the small fish tank, watching Ugly swim back and forth. Zoro stood on the bottom step and rolled his eyes, "Come on already. Dad's waiting for us."

Tony jumped up eagerly, his eyes shining, "I wanna sit by you!"

"Sure, whatever, buddy." Grinning, Zoro waited until Tony tried to push past him to go up the steps before grabbing the little boy and hoisting him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. Tony squealed with laughter as Zoro trotted up the stairs and to the front door. He stopped to let his brother down carefully before padding over to his sneakers. Tony was still giggling as he pulled on his own shoes and fastened the velcro straps.

"Zoro, did Koshiro tell you that we need to take your car too?" Mihawk strode into the entryway, jingling a suspiciously familiar set of keys in his hand.

"What?! No!" Zoro protested as he yanked on his shoes, "I need it today!"

Mihawk squinted at the googly-eyed shark keychain fob in his hand dubiously; examining the aquarium logo on the front before flipping it over to snort at the words 'For Marimo' scrawled in marker on the back, "We are aware of your plans. Which is why we're going to drop you off before going to the match. I don't have time to unload all of Tashigi's equipment from the back of the van right now."

"Seriously?!" Zoro whined and tried to grab his keys from his father.

Mihawk dodged his hand and arched a single eyebrow, "A mossball…? Really, Zoro?"

Blushing furiously, Zoro lunged and snatched up his keys, "Fucking fine! But I'm driving!"

"Language, son." Mihawk waved Tony out the front door after Zoro with a faint smirk before he locked their front door and strolled behind them to the car. Zoro rolled his eyes as he slid into the driver's seat.

When Tony went to open the passenger's side door, Mihawk stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, "Son, you need to ride in the van. Zoro doesn't have a booster seat in his car."

Zoro turned in his seat, resting his arm on the edge of the backrest as he watched his foster brother's face crumple into a miserable expression, "But Zozo said…!"

Rolling his eyes, Zoro interrupted sharply, "Don't call me Zozo!"

Mihawk's thin lips twitched into the barest hint of a smile, "Maybe next time, son. But for now I need you to obey."

"Tony!" Koshiro walked over from the van to bend over and take the little boy's hand as he started to sniffle, "If we hurry and leave soon we can stop for ice cream on the way!"

"Ice cream?" Tony's expression brightened as he rubbed at his teary eyes with his free hand as he let Koshiro gently lead him to the van's open side door.

Zoro smirked knowingly as he heard Kuina's outraged shout from the other vehicle, "Dad we can't stop! I have to be there early to warm up!" He wasn't disappointed when chaos promptly broke out and Perona began screeching from the back seat and demanding her favorite shitty mocha-flavored ice cream as Kuina bitched about 'being late'. Zoro snickered to himself as over all the obnoxious fighting, Tashigi began to loudly remind everyone that ice cream had too many calories and artificial ingredients, and that her coaches wouldn't approve.

"I can deal with angry parents and coaches, but I am still amazed at how Koko handles your sisters." Mihawk slid into the passenger's seat as he shook his head solemnly.

Next to the van, Zoro could see Koshiro's shoulders stiffen and he finished buckling Tony into his booster seat. He turned slowly with a terrifyingly serene expression, "Mihawk Diego Roronoa-Isshin, you did _not _just call me, Koko!"

Mihawk actually fucking smiled as Koshiro's eyes narrowed at him, and Zoro felt a chill run down his spine. His father wasn't well. Mihawk's unnerving grin grew wider, flashing his white teeth dangerously as he purred, "Yet you greatly enjoyed my endearments on our last date night, my love."

Koshiro's face bloomed a brilliant crimson, and Zoro turned to drop his head against the steering wheel with a groan as all his sisters made loud, disgusted sounds from the other car. Mihawk frantically patted at Zoro's knee and hissed, "_Start the car now, son_."

Zoro blindly turned his keys and jerked his head up to see Koshiro angrily trying to yank Mihawk's door open, while his shitty father pulled back on it to keep it closed. Zoro sat frozen for a moment, unsure of what to do, and Koshiro finally gave up. He made a few frustrated gestures and shut the van's side door before stalking around and getting into the driver's seat. Mihawk sighed and relaxed into his seat and Zoro snorted, "Dad is totally gonna poison you someday."

Mihawk raised a smug eyebrow, "Not after I bought him those silk sheets."

"_Oh my god_!" Zoro gagged and desperately turned on the radio - spinning the knob on the volume as high as possible so he wouldn't have to hear another horrible word. His shitty father was still smirking as he backed out of the driveway to head to the aquarium.

There was a blessed lack of interaction between the two of them until Zoro turned on to the highway leading further into town. Mihawk reached over and abruptly turned the radio off in the middle of an obnoxious car insurance ad. "Hey!" Zoro protested and tried to reach the power button, but Mihawk easily grabbed his wrist in a hard grip, "I would like you to tell me about this boyfriend of yours."

"God, Pops no!"

"I wasn't asking, son." Mihawk's tone was stern as he dropped Zoro's arm, "I am meeting this young man today, and I would like to know a bit about him. Perona has already informed me of how you met."

Groaning, Zoro was tempted to hit his head against the steering wheel until he had a concussion. Why was his family always like this?! "There's nothing to _tell_! He's great, okay?"

"Zoro. You know I just want what's best for you." Shifting uncomfortably in the driver's seat, Zoro tried his next best plan and ignored his father, hoping that he would drop the subject. Instead, Mihawk went straight for the kill, "I refuse to have to see my son end up in another medical office because this boy isn't what he seems to be."

Zoro felt like he'd been sucker-punched in the gut, and the car swerved dangerously in the lane before Mihawk calmly reached over and grabbed the wheel. Hurt was quickly replaced by all-too familiar humiliation and anger, and Zoro roughly shoved away Mihawk's arm, "It not fucking like _that_. Sanji isn't like that, and he would never fuck me over like… like…" His voice trailed off as his ex's name stuck in his throat. He could feel his father watching him closely - it spoke volumes that he hadn't given him shit about cursing - but he took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the steering wheel as he kept his eyes resolutely ahead, "Sanji _is_ different, and he would never lie to me."

Mihawk was silent for a long moment before finally tapping the radio back on and turning down the volume, "Good. Because if he hurts my son I will bury him in the back yard. In pieces."

Zoro rolled his eyes, but he kept his thoughts on his father's overly-dramatic declarations to himself. He didn't even protest when his father tuned the dial to some godawful 60s music station. As long as the Beatles kept Mihawk's attention, Zoro would happily listen to their weirdass songs all day.

By the time they finally pulled into the aquarium parking lot, Zoro had heard enough about people living in yellow submarines, and shitty octopus and their gardens for one lifetime. He parked the car in the fire lane and eagerly jumped out - leaving the engine running, "Okay, I'll see you later, Pops!"

However, before he could fully make his escape, Mihawk reached over and deliberately turned off the car, tossing the keys in one hand as he stepped out onto the curb, "Any fines for parking violations will come out of your allowance."

"_What?!_"

Mihawk smirked, "So you had better introduce me to this, 'Sanji' quickly."

"Jesus Christ, really, Pops?!"

"Language, son."

Zoro muttered viciously under his breath as he marched angrily to the entrance with Mihawk hot on his heels. However, he had to laugh when he spotted Sanji in the lobby handing out maps with a silly, octopus-shaped hat made out of twisted, multicolored balloons. His boyfriend looked up right away and rolled his blue eyes as Zoro snickered. He pulled out his phone to snap a picture, and Sanji hilariously turned bright red, but the small children nearby reassured Zoro that his boyfriend wouldn't be able to retaliate just yet.

He'd completely forgotten about his father until Mihawk smoothly stepped around him and stared Sanji down with his favorite 'threatening' blank expression. Sanji's gaze darted uncertainly between Zoro and his father, and the moment quickly began to feel awkward before Mihawk finally spoke up, "I believe you are dating my son."

Zoro let his head fall back with a groan as Sanji's eyes widened in horror, "Uhhh…"

Mihawk held out a hand with a cold smile, "Please call me Mr. Roronoa-Isshin."

"_Pops_!" Zoro lurched forward and grabbed Sanji's shoulder - trying to tug him away before his father could be even more of an asshole.

Smirking, Mihawk let his hand drop, "Pity that young men aren't taught how to give a good handshake anymore. Says a lot about a person, don't you think?"

"_Pops, stop_!" Zoro hissed in irritation as he tried to urge his frozen boyfriend away to safety.

Mihawk, sighed with mock regret, "I need to get on the road, but it was nice _finally_ meeting you…" Zoro felt his temper rise as his father drew out the last word, quirking an eyebrow like he didn't already fucking know Sanji's name.

Sanji finally seemed to recover somewhat, and he thrust his hand forward with a stubborn set to his jaw, "It's, Sanji, sir."

When Mihawk reached out and gripped his boyfriend's hand, Zoro winced in sympathy. However, Sanji's expression never changed, and after Mihawk released him with an approving nod, his eyes held an ornery glint, "I'm sorry to hear you can't stay, sir. May I hold the door for you on your way out?"

Zoro was shocked into complete silence, and Mihawk just blinked and stared a moment before turning on his heel and walking away without another word. Sanji snorted the moment Mihawk was out the front door and turned to Zoro, "I think that went well." He grabbed Zoro's hand and began to lead him - still stunned and somewhat horrified - through the crowded lobby. "Come on. I think they needed some help at the grill."


End file.
